Suburb with good schools that is an easy drive to Carol Stream and NW of O'Hare (Chicago: fit in)

[jennemmy]

Family of 4 with elem/middle school age kids need advice. Looking for a walkable downtown that isn't too big. Wheaton seems to fit our criteria but is too large pop for us. Ideally, we would rent for 6 mos with a budget of $3k. I know nothing about the area and feel overwhemed by the statistics. Ideally, charming downtown, smaller schools, community pool for summer swimming.

[Vlajos]

I wouldn't suggest wheaton anyway.

[chet everett]

Despite the above comment (provided w/o qualifications....) Wheaton would likely score high for those seeking a town with a walkable core, good park facilities (including swim facilities), and well rated schools. Glen Ellyn is likely more expensive and towns like Elmhurst are even larger. Towns west of Wheaton would make for a longer drive to O'Hare.

Wheaton's core lives a little "smaller" that the town's stated population becuase the southern and northern portions are more subdivision - centric and there are separate high schools which serve various attendance areas.

Probably worth checking out / listing other points on your wish list.

[jennemmy]

I am more of a small town girl and smaller schools seem to suit my kids better. My husband will be commuting west of O'Hare. I am finding a limited amount of rentals in smaller towns but with the plan to buy within 6 months of the relo, it is important that we find a good fit in one town. Square footage is less important than quality finish. My kids are gymnasts and it seems like Carol Stream and Aurora have competitive programs. Short commutes for practice play a big part in our decision. I guess parks are less important than a town with walkable sidewalks and not far from a club that offers a pool membership.

Is $3,000 too low for a nice rental? If so, what should we expect?

[divakat]

Wheaton is very pretty as it is a college town---has a quaint feel with lots of green space. However, the downtown area is pretty sleepy in my opinion. I've been there twice during a Saturday night and there was not much happening. I work by O'Hare and living on the North side of Naperville close to the highway takes me 45 minutes in rush hour. Naperville has a great downtown, plenty of people out and about, riverwalk, centennial beach is wonderful with a great community pool, plenty of parks, shops and restaurants. Top schools as well. Glen Ellyn is also really pretty but more expensive than both Wheaton and Naperville.

[Lizita]

What you're looking for may be hard to come by in this area. Most Chicago area schools are fairly large so you may not have much choice unless you want to put your kids in private schools or you're willing to live further away.

The NW burbs are not very pedestrian friendly in general. You need a car to get around to get to necessary places like the grocery store. In most areas you need a car to get anywhere. There are a few exceptions though. Some suburbs have little downtown areas where you can walk around. Arlington Heights has a very cute little downtown area that I would highly recommend if a pedestrian friendly downtown is what you're looking for. Rents in that area are pretty high but if you're able to pay $3000/month you should be able to afford it. Arlington Heights schools are good but I don't know how big the elementary schools are.
Another town with a nice downtown is Des Plaines. They also, like most NW suburbs, have good schools. Both Arlington Heights and Des Plaines are close to O'Hare. Des Plaines downtown is also close to a Metra station. I believe Arlington Heights also has one.
Mount Prospect also has a little downtown that you may want to check out.

If you're willing to live further away you may want to check out the far away burbs. They are more like small towns. Towns like Elgin and St Charles are pretty cute, especially St Charles which has a nice little downtown.

Of all these places I think Arlington Heights would be my first choice.

[jennemmy]

Thanks for the details on Arlington Heights and Des Plaines. We will be in town next week and my list of towns to investigate is growing. I am finding most of the school districts are pretty large but I think I have a good list to start.

[cubssoxfan]

If looking into AH, I suggest the following districts: D25, D23, D57 and a small step below D26. These districts serve most of AH, most of Prospect Heights and most of Mt. Prospect. The more desirable high schools to have residency linked to are Hersey and Prospect, although all D211 high schools are good.

[ToriaT]

Wheaton is your best bet. Even though it may seem big it seems small townish to me. Pools, parks, shops you name it we have it. You might also try looking into winfield or warrenville if you like small towns...they are close to wheaton for shopping and stuff but they seem like podunk to me. also the elementary schools in wheaton are smallish and neighborhood like. If you do check out winfield, be mindful of the HS district because I do not think they all go to wheaton schools. Warrenville is in CUSD 200.